Pub to donate proceeds to charity

A woman who runs a Nottinghamshire pub is planning to donate all of its proceeds to a charity dedicated to researching a rare genetic disease.

Gail Liley, licensee of the Durham Ox in Orston, near Bingham, set up the charity Oliver's Army in memory of her 14 year old son who died after suffering from adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) in 2006.

After Oliver's death, Gail became determined to find a way to fund more research into the condition. Her older son Sam also carries the gene for the disease but has remained healthy.

When the lease for the pub became available in December 2006, Gail and her husband Mark, who continues to work for a distribution company, saw it as an ideal opportunity to boost funding for the charity and to help Gail come to terms with her loss.

"My son had only just died so I needed to do something to do something.The village pub was quite run down and needed to be built up again. If I had not taken this on, I don't know what I would have done."

In the last two years, the pub's proceeds have been used for its refurbishment but Gail hopes it will now be able to provide up to £50,000 a year for Oliver's Army.

"This is not our lifeline so we intend that all the profits will go towards the charity."

Gail has already raised £300,000 through raffles, balls, sponsorship and music events which have included The Commitments performing in the pub.

"There is no government funding. We keep people working full time researching the gene.

"We have to keep trying to find something that will stop people going through the same thing that we have."

She added the restoration of the pub had also given something back to the community, which has embraced the couple's efforts to drum up funds for the charity.

"It is now a proper traditional drinking pub," she said. "And the community feedback has been brilliant. People have been really supportive."